Apartments/Mansions/Living in Japan

[shiden]

hello all,

I do apologise if this is the 1000000th time this has been posted.

I always thought the difference between an Apartment and a Mansion in Japan is that Apartments are more geared towards students and are lower in costs. Looking at apartments.gaijinpot and realestate.co.jp, they cost just the same as Mansions. So what is really the difference?

I will be meeting with apartment/mansion real estate people over the course of the next 2 weeks to find myself a nice apartment. Is there anything that I should look out for?

I found an apartment with "hikari" real estate agent and the advertisement had no maintence fee, however, when I asked for a breakdown of the moving in costs, they added the maintence fee of 10,000yen.
The ad. also said no deposit, but they have charged security money and said "Security money is used as a cleaning fee and will not given back to you, when you leave the property." this fee is equivalent to 1months rent.. >_< OMG!

In other breakdowns, they charge:

Guarantee Fee, Renter Insurance, Key-lock Changing Fee, 24-hour Support System, Anti-bacteria Cleaning Fee.

So now i need to ask.. what is the difference between guarantee fee and renter insurance?
what is a 24 hour support system?
and what is an anti-bacteria cleaning fee?

I feel like i'm going to step into a brand new world. As exciting as it all seems to me right now... I'd like to be armed with knowledge!

Thank you in advance for your answers.

Regards
~S

[gekkonaut]

Those seem like different names for what is really the usual fees..

Consider a guest house instead.. generally no move in fees, month by month, and not too much more expensive..especially if you're not staying for years and years.

Try http://www.sakura-house.com/ or one of the others.

[Effected After]

Mansions have concrete walls - fairly soundproof. Apartments have no concrete, and usually you can hear your neighbors.

[kurogane]

Mansions have concrete walls - fairly soundproof. Apartments have no concrete, and usually you can hear your neighbors.

Did I ever tell you about the Jehovah's Witness woman that used to come around Sunday morning and bang the crap out of my ultra-religious American neighbour when I lived in an old thin walled apartment????

Fortunately, my GF was always there with me when she visited, so we just treated it as mood music.


OP, If you use an English Friendly Real Estate Agent, they will probably soak you.

Those seemingly endless petty charges are how they make their profit.

Also, insurance is probably liability and damage; the guarantee is simply a security deposit in the event of non-payment.

Anyways, as somebody above mentioned, they change the name of the charge by region and company, mostly just to confoozle and bamboozle.

[Brown Cow]

Mansions have concrete walls - fairly soundproof. Apartments have no concrete, and usually you can hear your neighbors.

News to me. it's a marketing term as far as I am aware. Hang on, I know, I'll just run off and consult dictionary.com.

[kurogane]

News to me. it's a marketing term as far as I am aware. Hang on, I know, I'll just run off and consult dictionary.com.

Nah............mansions are ferroconcrete, or whatever, apartments are wooden or reinforced steel frame.

Allowing for variations and such.

So, anybody else feel the earth move?

[Effected After]

News to me. it's a marketing term as far as I am aware. Hang on, I know, I'll just run off and consult dictionary.com.

Hah, you really are bitter about me proving you wrong, aren't you! I'll tell you what. You go check dictionary.com, and get back to us with the definition for mansion and apartment right away. Mmmkay?

[Brown Cow]

I've watched plenty of buildings being built of steel frame that are then marketed as mansions. Concrete costs a fortune and probably isn't as good in earthquakes. They don't sway.

[Effected After]

▼マンションとは
主に鉄骨（S)、鉄筋コンクリート（RC）、鉄骨鉄筋コンクリート（SRC）造の建物をいいます。不動産屋の表示は、だ� ｢たい上の基準で決めてます。

Mansion is usually the name applied to buildings made of re-enforced steel frame and steel concrete. Realtors will usually use this distinction when advertising them.

「なるほど！」ではなく、実は名称に規定などはありま せん。多くの人がそう呼んでいるにすぎません。

'I see', you may say, but actually this definition is not official, and is just the definition many people use.

▼アパートとは
主に木造や軽量鉄骨造の建物（二階建てまで）をいいま す。これも名称に規定はありません。さらに『 コーポ 』や『 ハイツ 』という名称もありますが、ほとんどがアパートという名称よりも、借りる方に良い印象を与えるだろ うという理由で使われています。

Apartment is the name usually given to buildings made of wood and lightweight steel (up to two floors). This also is not an official definition. The names 'co-op' and 'heights' are also used, and these are mostly like apartments but are used when the building looks to be appropriate for rentals.

Link

[Effected After]

Concrete costs a fortune and probably isn't as good in earthquakes. They don't sway.

Really? Have you never been to Landmark Tower? Tallest building in Japan - made of concrete, and somewhat sways during earthquakes, though they have counterbalancing loads to keep it from swaying too much.

[kurogane]

I've watched plenty of buildings being built of steel frame that are then marketed as mansions. Concrete costs a fortune and probably isn't as good in earthquakes. They don't sway.

Is that frame not then filled with concrete, or some similar substance, blown or injected in???


Or is the frame just walled by some wood-like type substance?

At any rate, okay.



Still, the old distinction is concrete versus wood, or more traditional framing versus, welll............less traditional framing???




When the great Zen Master Yukiko taught me all The Many Mysteries, that's what she said.

Another element I suppose is that mansions are often owned in condominium.

I suppose a really big apartment could be too, but that would only raise the question again?

Is that a mansion?

Is it an apartment?

Or is it an apartment dressed as a mansion but retaining its essential apartment-like essence???????????


The mind reels................................


At any rate, you 2 have fun pissing on each other.

I think it's time for chow.

I think I need some Chinese take-out from Mi Sum Ho, a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuk Hin Enterprises.


2 actual companies, btw.

[Effected After]

Is that frame not then filled with concrete, or some similar substance, blown or injected in???

Concrete is poured. They essentially make a mould/form out of pieces of wood, put together a rebar skeleton, and pour the concrete around the rebar.

[kurogane]

Yeah, I know that stuff, I just wanted to know from BCow if the frame he spoke of was then filled or covered with concrete, or something else.

Some of those steel framed apartments are just walled with siding, but that goes back to the old distinction.


Thanks, though.



At any rate, there are more pressing matters:

I can't decide between Chow Mein or fried rice, and above and beyond that, go to the Members' List, sort by post count, and check the status on poster #3.

I think they even promoted him.

[Effected After]

Always chow mein.

I didn't even know there was a member's list. What makes you think they promoted him?

[Brown Cow]

Yeah, I know that stuff, I just wanted to know from BCow if the frame he spoke of was then filled or covered with concrete, or something else.

Some of those steel framed apartments are just walled with siding, but that goes back to the old distinction.

The vast majority of tall buildings anywhere in the world are steel frame with curtain walls even if they don't look it.

One common feature of skyscrapers is having a steel framework from which curtain walls are suspended, rather than load-bearing walls of conventional construction. Most skyscrapers have a steel frame that enables the construction of load-bearing walls taller than of those made of reinforced concrete. Skyscrapers' walls are not load-bearing, and therefore most skyscrapers are characterized by large surface areas of windows made possible by the concept of steel frame and curtain walls. However, skyscrapers can have curtain walls that mimic conventional walls and a small surface area of windows.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyscraper

[Brown Cow]

Oh, and the Landmark Tower is no exception. It is steel frame with curtain walls of course. Not reinforced concrete.

http://skyscrapercenter.com/yokohama/landmark-tower/

[kurogane]

Always chow mein.

I didn't even know there was a member's list. What makes you think they promoted him?

Yeah, Crispy chow mein with beef in black bean sauce with greens.

Yum.

Anyways, I was joking. I had never noticed he had the same rank as Hijinx and I.


Seems unfair, really; we actually try pretty hard to make our posts not very funny.





So, anyhoo:

thanks for that BCow, Very interesting.

Well, sort of interesting...............



Coise dem coitin' walls.

[tarzan'snuts]

Yeah, Crispy chow mein with beef in black bean sauce with greens.

Yum.

Anyways, I was joking. I had never noticed he had the same rank as Hijinx and I.


Coise dem coitin' walls.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCkHU...e_gdata_player

Special present for you Kuro....

[Brown Cow]

You are welcome. I'm not sure why I find it mildly interesting either. Partly because dad was a civil engineer, partly those black and white photos of Empire State Building workers, partly just a curiosity with what I see being built around me I suppose.

[Brown Cow]

Lewis Hine of course. His other work is superb too - especially his pictures of child workers.

[Effected After]

Oh, and the Landmark Tower is no exception. It is steel frame with curtain walls of course. Not reinforced concrete.

http://skyscrapercenter.com/yokohama/landmark-tower/

I stand corrected. But that said, concrete does sway. I say this with first hand knowledge - I live and work in concrete buildings, and they sway every time there is an earthquake.

[shiden]

err thank you for responding to my post that is almost 2 and bit months old.
in the meantime I forked out a LOOOOOT of money to move into a mansion. (laughs). sounds odd to me... mansion that is and not apartment.